(a) The Bureau of Land Management may enter into a cooperative range improvement agreement with a person, organization, or other government entity for the installation, use, maintenance, and/or modification of permanent range improvements or rangeland developments to achieve management or resource condition objectives. The cooperative range improvement agreement shall specify how the costs or labor, or both, shall be divided between the United States and cooperator(s).

(b) Subject to valid existing rights, cooperators and the United States will share title to permanent structural range improvements such as fences, wells, and pipelines where authorization is granted after August 11, 2006 in proportion to their contribution to on-the-ground project development and construction costs. The authorization for all new permanent water developments, such as spring developments, wells, reservoirs, stock tanks, and pipelines, shall be through cooperative range improvement agreements. The authorized officer will document a permittee's or lessee's interest in contributed funds, labor, and materials to ensure proper credit for the purposes of §§4120.3-5 and 4120.3-6(c).

(c) The United States shall have title to nonstructural range improvements such as seeding, spraying, and chaining.

(d) Range improvement work performed by a cooperator or permittee on the public lands or lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management does not confer the exclusive right to use the improvement or the land affected by the range improvement work.

[60 FR 9964, Feb. 22, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 4227, Feb. 5, 1996; 71 FR 39505, July 12, 2006]